


Keeping the cold out

by 10k_au



Category: Z Nation (TV)
Genre: F/F, gives jacket, pneumonia onset
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-08-29 16:26:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8497081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/10k_au/pseuds/10k_au
Summary: Addy and Cassandra are stuck in the back of the truck in the cold. Cassandra's core temperature drops quickly.





	

The night is cold, Vasquez is outside of the truck, fiddling with the fuel-cap. The fuel had run out, and the group was stranded at the side of the road. Spirits were at an all-time low in the group as a result of no food and water. Warren was in the front seat, watching Vasquez in the wing mirror with a look on her face half way between concentration and attraction. Doc is beside her, fast asleep and snoring gently.

I shivered, the cold creeping under my skin and trying to pull me to pieces. I cursed Tobias under my breath for dressing me up in such dire clothing, entirely inappropriate for the apocalypse. I’d moved straight passed the Goosebumps stage and onto not being able to feel my limbs at all. They ached numbly, making me fidget.

“You alright, hon?” Addy asks gently from next to me, I turn to look at her, soft and smooth in the dim evening light. Every time I look at her, I can’t believe that she’s mine. Her red hair falls into the most beautiful curls around her jaw, her big blue eyes search my face, waiting for a reply. When I don’t speak, she shuffles closer, throwing her arm around me.

“Cass?” She watches me as I shake a little more violently and hurries to take her jacket off. She helps me sit forward and drapes it over my shoulders, rubbing my arm gently to help warm me up. “There you go babe” she mutters.

“Than… thank you” I manage to stutter, giving her a little smile. Warren moves in the front seat and looks at me in the dash mirror. Her eyebrows raise and her hand squeezes the steering wheel tightly.

“She okay back there?” she asks, sounding tired.

“Yeah, she will be” Addy replies, stroking a finger down the side of my face, I melted under her touch as I always did. “I’ll warm her up.” Her hands move onto my legs, trying to get the blood to keep pumping. The door opens and Murphy sticks his head in, earning a glare from Addy.

“Murphy shut that fucking door” she hisses, wrapping herself around me.

“No scissoring in the back of the truck” He tells us, before Addy pushes him out and slams the door shut again. Warren rolls her window down a little and points at him through the gap, telling him to mind his mouth or she’ll do something about it. He obviously makes a snarky comment because she growls and opens the door, jumping out and slamming it again as she starts shouting.

Addy puts her head next to mine and her cheek burns against mine, she’s cold too, but next to my icy cold skin it feels like fire. She turns a little to plant a kiss on my cheek, spreading the flames.

“You should have told me you were so cold” she murmurs. “I could have drifted off to sleep without noticing.”

“I.. I didn’t want to make a scene”

Addy shakes her head, and I don’t see, but I’m 99% sure that she probably rolls her eyes as well. I know what she’s thinking, that I’m not helping anyone by acting like this. That if I get Ill, that I’m going to get everyone killed.

“Listen to me Cassandra” she says gently. “We all care about you, but you need to forget about this mentality that Fuckface and his cult gave you about yourself. We can’t help you if you don’t help yourself.”

I stare at her, surprised at her tone of voice and choice of words. For a moment I think she’s going to slap my face, an attempt to bring me to my senses, but she just presses her face back to mine again and sighs, holding me tight, trying to get me warm.

“We need to get you some better clothes” She changes the subject. “Otherwise this is going to keep happening.” I nod and flex my fingers, relieved that the feeling is slowly coming back to my extremities. The lights in the truck flick on as the front door opens and Warren climbs back in. Her hair has come out of her braid a little and she looks generally dishevelled.

“Murphy give you some shit?” Addy asks, her hand finding its way into mine, fingers tickling my palm.

“10k.” Warren replies, surprising everyone.

“10k gave you shit?” I mutter, frowning.

“10k gave Murphy shit” she corrects, smoothing her hair down. “Murphy said something about you two to him and he just flipped out.” We all sit in a shocked silence for a while. Then Addy grins and pipes up.

“Did he get him good?” She asks, I tap her with the back of my hand, giving her my best ‘don’t encourage them’ look. She raises her eyebrows back, pouting, trying not to laugh.

“Broken nose I think” Warren groans, obviously annoyed at the medical supplies that are going to have to be used. “Vasquez is dealing with them, which unfortunately means longer before we can get out of here.”

“How long? We have to get Cassandra somewhere warm.” Addy snaps. I pull her jacket tighter around my chest and give a wide eyed glance to Warren who’s looking at me in the mirror again, seemingly checking how bad I look.

“I’m okay, I’m good” I reassure her. “Addy’s warmed me up, trust me I’ve been through worse.” She turns in her seat to look me in the face and gives me a pitying glance. It’s something I’m used to, but I still don’t like it.

“Look.” She says. “If you need us to get you somewhere quick…”

“Warren.”

“Okay, okay” she turns away, hand in the air to show that she’s not going to push the issue any further. Addy squeezes me, nuzzling at my jaw. I get the feeling that it’s not just about warming me up anymore, it’s about attaining comfort for herself as well. Since Mack, since everything, she’s needed the contact, a way to reassure herself that the people she loves are safe.

I lift my hand and brush my fingers through her hair, pulling through any knots. She shifts and plants a kiss on my neck, making half of my blood rush to my face, and the other half rush in the opposite direction. I duck my head and press my lips against her forehead. Her eyes twitch under her lids, her eyelashes delicately dusting her cheeks.

“Addy?” I whisper, the last bit of feeling coming back to my toes. She doesn’t reply, but she makes a gentle sound at the back of her throat. She’s asleep already. You grin and shake your head in disbelief.

“I’m so lucky to have you” I mutter, holding her tight against me, pressing my face into her hair and breathing her in.

“She’s just as lucky to have you” Says Warren, staring down at her lap. “I thought she was never going to be the same after Mack and you just picked her up.” I don’t say anything, simply mulling her words over, soaking up the emotion.

“We all needs someone who does that for us” She looks up and out of the window, no doubt gazing longingly at Vasquez. I don’t know whether she’s thinking of him, or whether her mind is filled with thoughts of Charlie. The line blurs between the two these days.

“We do” I state, just wanting to let her know that I was listening. “Addy does that for me too.”

“I know she does, Cassandra” Warren whispers. “I know.”


End file.
